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AAPL Turnover

Today, the market shudders at the news that Steve Jobs has a "more complex" medical condition than he originally described in his open letter at MacWorld. AAPL stock slid 7.1 percent in after hours trading and continues to take a hit.

All things considered, Jobs's prognosis is far more optimistic than it was in October 2008, when a so-called "citizen journalist" pronounced him dead. (At the time, AAPL dropped 10 percent in 10 minutes.) But it doesn't take a genius, or a genius bar for that matter, to conclude that Jobs has a far more serious condition than the "hormonal imbalance" cited last week to explain his rapid weight loss, or the "common bug" cited in June 2008 to explain his baggy mock turtleneck at the World Wide Developer's Conference.

The inability of Apple to play it straight with its stockholders exposes the company's weak succession strategy. It's widely estimated that Jobs's death would cause a 20 percent stock drop. So, it's an understandable impulse to prop Jobs up Weekend At Bernie's-style, even though he's been visibly ill for months. When the leader begins to symbolize an entire company, the perception of stability relies on that individual alone. Apple's challenge during Jobs's leave of absence will be to shift the public perception of Jobs from the Tech Messiah to that of a leader of equally strong, equally capable disciples.

There are several companies that could take a cue from Apple's mistake. Berkshire Hathaway would certainly flail without their oracle, Warren Buffett. (Although it's easy to imagine him sending pithy finance tips from beyond.)

Heaven forbid anything should happen to Martha Stewart. (One can only imagine the market's reaction to a maneuver by Alexis Stewart to take the reins.)